For this reason, many Americans are surprised to learn that in much of Austria, Switzerland, Germany, and other parts of central Europe, there are no school buses!
In other parts of that region, to be sure, there are some school buses, but far fewer than one finds in America. Many children take, instead of a school bus, the public bus.
By contrast, many cities in the United States spend millions of dollars in needless duplication, as school buses and public buses follow each other along nearly identical routes.
This redundancy is not the result of any educational, transportational, or economic policy. Instead, it is the result of social views about childhood.
American parents are, in this respect at least, more protective of their children. They tend to think that a school-age child would not be safe or comfortable on a bus filled with adult commuters on their way to work.
By contrast, the children of central Europe are raised to function more independently, so a second-grade student is accustomed to boarding a public bus and sitting, perhaps, between an accountant and an engineer on their way to work.
The fact that the American busing pattern is needlessly expensive, or environmentally unfriendly, is not the main concern. More to the point is an overly protective attitude on the part of American parents.
Instead of worrying about the impact of adult commuters on students, it is worth considering the impact of the students and their presence on the adults.
In many American cities, school buses are known as the home to bullying, drug deals, fistfights, and other undesirable behavior. To unleash the company of schoolchildren onto unsuspecting adult commuters would place the adults at risk, not the students.
By contrast, children in central Europe learn appropriate public behavior at an early age, and thus are able confidently and safely to use public transportation to and from school.
Is it time for America to abandon the big yellow school buses and teach children deportment?
